Ladybug's Lament
by TheNovelArtist
Summary: Marinette lives a simple life, one that includes working in her family bakery and secretly crushing on her best friend, but after a rough day that ends with a fall into the Seine, she stuck solving the most mythical problem she's sure anyone's ever faced.
1. Chapter 1

_After fighting with six different ideas for what I was going to write for my friend Rosegardentwilight's birthday, I settled on a Siren's Lament AU ;D Happy birthday, my friend! Hope you enjoy this :D_

* * *

Marinette's life was a simple one. She lived with her parents at a bakery in Paris, helping them run the business. At twenty-two, she knew every single in and out there was to the bakery. Though it was always unpredictable what kind of day it would be, and though some days were much harder than others, the simplicity of her life was a comfort, one of the few she had growing up.

Her home life was fine, and even handling the bakery was easy. But school…

School had been brutal.

She'd been bullied so heavily that her academics had suffered. She found it easier to play hooky for the day than face the hallways of the cruel place filled with cruel people just waiting to knock her down, verbally or physically.

However, during one of those days was when she met the one person that she could say had become her only friend.

She knew who he was—his posters were everywhere so it was nearly impossible _not_ to know Adrien Agreste—but he had begged her to be quiet and just let him enjoy being free from the paparazzi and fans and his bodyguard for the day. She'd agreed, knowing what it was like to feel like she had to hide at any given moment. She'd helped him decide which movie would most likely have the emptiest theater, and they watched the movie together.

Though, in hindsight, 'watched' was a generous term. They had started talking during the previews, which lead to them continuing talking throughout the movie, and by the time the credits were rolling, they were exchanging numbers suggesting they should do it again.

Which they did.

Again. And again. And again.

They became best friends, and it wasn't just because they were each other's only real friend at the moment. He was the first person who truly encouraged her and stood by her side even when school was rough. And he'd admitted that it was wonderful having a friend that never cared about his celebrity status and genuinely cared for him and his wellbeing.

But somewhere along the line, she'd fallen for him. It was so embarrassing. They were friends. They were supposed to stay friends. He liked her because she was a genuine friend to him, because she wasn't looking for anything more from him than friendship.

Meaning that no matter how hard it was, she'd have to stay mum. She would never tell him that she'd been crushing on him for a few years now. Because as he'd said many times before, they were great friends. A great team.

A tap on her shoulder sent her leaping into the sky, yanking her from her reverie.

She glared at the blonde offender, her supposedly best friend who knew better than to sneak up at her like that, who was laughing. "Sorry."

"You're not sorry," she grumbled.

"Guilty as charged." Adrien held up his hands. "Hey, I think that we're past any rush. Could I take my break? Kagami's here. But I could tell her I can't if you need me to—"

"It's fine," Marinette interrupted with a forced grin. With Marinette's parents out of town visiting relatives in China for the next few weeks, Marinette was running the place on her own. Well, besides Adrien who had been more than happy to pick up any extra shifts she needed him to. He was such an amazing friend and helper, which made Marinette feel guilty over just how far her heart sank at the sight of Kagami standing outside with a cup of coffee in her hands. "Go see your girlfriend. Besides, you deserve a break."

"Thanks, Marinette," he said, slipping out of his apron. "Be back in five." He roughly folded the apron, then set it in a cubby behind the counter before heading outside to meet her. Marinette forced her smile to remain, but in reality, it broke her heart to see Adrien out there with the girl he knew from his fencing club being all smiles and whatnot.

"Oh, you poor girl."

Marinette looked over to where Miss Lila Rossi, her worst school bully and yet a regular customer, was standing with a mock frown on her face.

"Seems nothing goes your way, huh, Marinette?"

She scoffed. "You're wrong. _I _was the one who encouraged Adrien to date Kagami." Which, she had been. Adrien had often talked about Kagami and how they usually sparred together. The mention of the girl always seemed to put a smile on his face, and Marinette wanted nothing more for him to be able to smile since his father disowned him when Adrien decided to quit modeling… with Marinette's encouragement. She'd never not feel guilty for causing such a rift between him and the only family member he had left.

"Yeah," Lila said with a knowing smirk. "I doubt that. Anyway, best of luck dealing with that broken heart. I hear chocolate ice cream's a good remedy. Don't worry about the calories. A girl with a face like yours shouldn't have to be careful of her weight."

Lila strutted out of the store, leaving Marinette alone, sulking from that sting. She had to learn to let those go and not obsess over her appearance in the mirror like she had in high school. Lila was a liar, had always been, and apparently, always would be. But Marinette had to admit that even though she knew they were lies, sometimes it was hard to convince herself otherwise.

With a sigh, Marinette turned away from the counter, mostly so she wouldn't be able to watch Adrien and Kagami interact. After all, Kagami was practically perfect. She was fit, fearless, and had a fine face. But even telling herself that, the selfish part of Marinette still regretted ever encouraging Adrien to go out with her.

The bell for the door rang, and she instinctively put on a customer service smile. "Hello, how can I help you?"

The old man looked over the case of treats. "Hmm. I don't know. I've never been here before. What do you recommend?"

Marinette glanced over the lines of baked goods. "The macarons are always enjoyable."

He hummed, looking at them. "Perfect. I will take two of whichever ones you think are the best."

With a nod, she grabbed a little bag and a pair of tongs, using them to put two of her personal favorite macarons into the bag. When she returned to the register, he was ready with a bill to complete the transaction.

"Perfect," Marinette said, taking the bill, then pulling out his change to hand back. "Thank you very much. I hope you enjoy them."

He smiled. "You wear a smile, yet I see sadness in your eyes."

Instantly, Marinette's smile disappeared, mostly because it was near impossible to keep smiling when a perfect stranger calls your bluff so bluntly.

The man looked out the window to where Adrien was chatting animatedly with Kagami. "The ache in your heart wouldn't happen to be from that boy out there, would it?"

She wanted nothing more than to crawl into a hole and die. "Is it that obvious?"

He shook his head. "I've been around many years; I know the signs of a broken heart. I think I have just the thing to cheer you up."

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a little octagonal box to put on the counter.

"Oh, no no no," Marinette said, waving her hands around. "I couldn't take that."

"Of course, you can," the man said. "They're said to give you a little luck. Maybe, it will help you with your boy troubles." With that, he headed out of the store before Marinette could stop him. "My best wishes to you, Miss Marinette."

He disappeared from the store before she could say a word. "Thank you," she mumbled, despite no one being around to hear it.

Curiously, she reached down to open the box, gasping as she saw a pair of Ladybug print earrings. They were really cute. And with that ladybug pattern…

She put the earrings in her ears. What did it hurt? She could use all the luck she could get.

* * *

Monday nights for most people would be the boring start of the work week. However, Monday nights for Marinette meant going out with Adrien and walking around the city and maybe seeing a movie.

She had picked a dress to wear, a simple pink one that she paired with a denim jacket. She tossed her hair up into twin pig tails and finished them off with two pink bows. She smiled at herself in the mirror, thinking she looked pretty cute.

But suddenly, an image of Kagami came to her mind. That woman was always perfectly put together, and her hair was sleek and stylish, not put in little pigtails and definitely never decorated with bows.

She should change before Adrien arrived.

"Marinette?"

_Too late._ "Coming."

She grabbed her purse, shoving her phone and her wallet inside of it before making her way downstairs to where Adrien was.

Only to see him on the phone.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Kagami," he said. He caught Marinette's eye, then pointed to the phone mouthing 'sorry'. "I would come over right now, but I'm with Marinette."

"Go," Marinette said, her heart slowly breaking. "If you need to go, then go."

Adrien covered the mouth piece. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Marinette said with a forced smile. "Sounds like Kagami needs you. Go."

"Thanks, Marinette." He then took his hand away from the mouth piece. "Yeah, I'll be over as soon as I can. See you in a bit, Kagami." He hung up and slid the phone into his pocket. "I'm so sorry. Kagami wasn't accepted as a teacher for the fencing league she was applying for, and so her mom's upset meaning she's upset and —"

"It's okay," Marinette said, interrupting him. "Go to her. Tell her I'm sorry, too. That must be really hard on her."

Adrien grabbed hold of her shoulders. "Thank you, Marinette, for being so understanding."

"What are friends for?" Her smile was growing more forced by the minute as the number of pieces her heart was being broken into was growing.

"Still, thank you." With one last squeeze, he turned around and headed out. "We'll reschedule!" he hollered right before he slipped out the door. "Have a good night, Marinette."

"Thanks. You too."

The door shut, and instantly, Marinette felt her knees buckle. From her spot on the floor, she bit her lip, playing with the hem of her dress. Of course. She'd never be able to compete with Kagami. But that was what she had wanted for Adrien, right? Happiness? Someone who made him smile? He had someone who he cared for so much, and Kagami was very lucky to have him by her side.

She reached up to brush an errant lock of hair behind her ear, fingers brushing against her earring. "Lucky, huh?" she mumbled rubbing her finger over the jewelry. "Yeah, right."

As she looked out into the Parisian night, she couldn't help but think that maybe it would be nice to just get out and spend some time by herself. She rarely left, it seemed, unless it went out with Adrien.

As a friend, of course. Because that's all they were and all they would ever be: the best of friends.

She decided to go for a long walk; she needed it to clear her mind. She soon found herself at the Seine, looking over the bridge into the water. The moonlight shone off in little ripples, constantly swaying and moving. The sound wasn't loud enough to drown out the ambient noise of the city, one that had grown quieter with the fall of night. The cool air was such a contrast to that of the bakery, and the slight breeze felt good blowing against her exposed skin.

It was enough to help her drop the weight on her shoulders, if only for a moment. The weight of having been bullied for years. The weight of helping her parents run a bakery with a smile always on her face. The weight of having a wild crush for her best friend, the one who was always by her side.

The one who was dating another woman.

It was so much for one girl to handle. It hurt, the pain in her heart not able to be held back. She bit her lip, trying not to cry. She let out deep breath after deep breath in hopes to keep her tears at bay, but only succeeded in making herself light-headed, forcing her to lean against the barrier wall of the bridge.

"_Oh, broken-hearted one, your soul has grown weary. Have you turned to the lonely tides to engulf your tears?"_

A single tear slipped from her eye as she looked up to find where that angelic voice was coming from but there was no one she could see. But, to be fair, she couldn't see anything with her vision so blurry and head as fuzzy as it was.

_"May the waves embrace you, lull you softly to sleep. Ease away all the hurt and pain you've carried through the years."_

Slowly, she stood up straight to look over at the water, feeling as though it was calling for her. How, she couldn't know, but that was definitely where it was coming from. Was there a boat?

_"But if given the chance, would you forget the past?"_

She leaned over ever more, wondering if she could see it, her grip slowly slipping as she leaned further and further forward.

_"You and I could start all over."_

She was falling, the water fast approaching.

_"We can love again, my dear."_

_Splash!_


	2. Chapter 2

It wasn't every day… er, _ever_, that Marinette woke up next to a naked man.

After taking a moment to freak out, her face pressed into her hands and flaming with embarrassment, she realized she should cover him, which she accomplished with her jacket. Only then was she able to process that he was completely unconscious and they were on a boat in the Seine.

Meaning that she was at a loss at what to do. The most she could remember was a beautiful voice calling her towards the water. Did she fell into the Seine? She must have considering her clothes were soaked. But what about him? Did he save her? His teal blue hair was slightly curled from moisture and remnants of water glistened off his skin in the moonlight. He probably had jumped into the water to save her.

"Hey," she said, pushing at his shoulder in an attempt to wake him. "Um… excuse me."

The man grunted, his eyes scrunching as he came to. When he did open his eyes for a split second, they seemed unfocused.

"Hey," Marinette said again. "Are you okay?"

He grunted a second time, forcing himself to sit up with a hand holding his head as though in pain. Marinette didn't know what else she could do but watch him struggle.

When he opened his eyes this time, she could tell he was more lucid. They were surprisingly blue, as blue as the color in his hair, but that may just be the moonlight playing tricks on her. He suddenly froze, staring at his legs for the longest time before finally looking at her.

"Uh, hi," she said sheepishly. "Um… are you okay?"

"Uh… I don't know," he said, looking between his legs and her. "You're human."

She looked at herself, then at him, suddenly growing worried that she was with someone not so stable. "Yes."

"And I'm human."

"Yes…" Marinette hesitantly answered, slowly growing worried about if he hit his head in trying to save her. "Is that bad?"

"Well, two plus two is not equaling four in this equation."

She smiled, but it was strained. Fantastic. She was stuck on a boat with a guy who had a couple screws loose and had no idea how she got here or where they could get off. "Um… okay." Slowly, she stood up on the small boat, trying to figure out the best way to move it to somewhere they could get out of the Seine so she could get away from him. "I need to get home, but I don't know—"

Marinette had always been a klutz, this was something she knew. She also knew sea legs were a real thing and accounted for that. What she did not account for was the rope by her feet that tripped her up and sent her back into the river. She heard the man cry out for her as she went splashing into the Seine for a second time that evening.

An odd sensation overtook her body, her legs feeling like they were turned to jelly completely. She opened her eyes, seeing that the man above her, but something was off. Something was glowing in the moonlight. Something like… like a tail.

She looked down at her legs, only to see she was sporting a tail of her own.

Before she could scream, the man had grabbed her, pulling them both up to the surface.

"Damn it!" the man shouted. "I _knew_ something went wrong."

"What the heck!" Marinette cried. "You have a tail. _I _have a tail. I'm dreaming, right?"

"Frankly, sweetheart, I wish we both were."

Marinette's head was spinning so fast that she wasn't sure how to stop it or even slow it down. "Wha… how…?"

"Look," the man said. "I think the best course of action right now would be to get out of the water and think about this in the morning. After you, er, _we've_ both had some time to process this."

"How about you start explaining now." Marinette countered.

"Fine, we'll compromise, and I'll tell you everything once we get out of the water."

Marinette nodded. "Okay, that's a good plan."

* * *

When her alarm went off at three in the morning, telling her that it was about time to start putting all the premade pastries in the oven to bake, she almost thought that last night was all a dream. But no. She had a sticky note beside her bed and on her bathroom mirror and on her bedroom door that said "It was real! Don't freak out at Luka downstairs!"

She sighed, wishing beyond wishing that it had been a dream. That she hadn't been kissed by a siren—a siren! Like something straight out of mythology!—last night in an attempt for said siren to become a human again and get a second chance at life while she would gain his curse of becoming a siren and losing all her memories in the process.

It was a lot to handle on a regular day much less after only a few hours of sleep. Particularly since she was going to have to face the siren that had kissed her last night. She partially wondered why on earth she thought it was a good idea to bring him home with her, but she soon recalled him telling her that since the curse was somehow split between them, they were going to have to solve this mystery together.

"I was supposed to pass that curse fully onto you," Luka had told her on their way back home from their little dip in the Seine. He had been wearing nothing other than her jacket around his waist at the time and she kinda hoped that no one she knew saw the two of them together and wondering why she was with someone near completely nude. "But it looks like that didn't quite happen."

"What is the curse, anyway?"

"The curse to be a siren?" He'd quirked a brow at her, waiting for her to nod before continuing. "I don't know all the details. What I do know is that it's a pretty miserable fate. A siren—at least, what we are. We're not exactly the creatures of legend—is a creature that's doomed to be trapped in the Seine. Why we exist, I'm not sure. Though, I might know someone who could help."

"Then we'll go see them in the morning," Marinette had said. She'd been cold in her soggy dress and no jacket to protect her from the surprisingly chilly night breeze. And after everything that had happened, she had been in no mood to go hunting for anything other than her bed and some sleep.

Frankly, she still was in no mood to find anything other than sleep, but the shop must be manned.

"How did you even become a siren?" she'd asked last night. "Like, how do they exist?"

She did not take it as a good sign when Luka hesitated. "All I know is that only highly emotional individuals can become sirens, and that we can pass the curse along to any other highly emotional individual. In doing so, we are free of the curse, gaining back our human body while the human becomes a siren, losing all their memories in the process."

_Losing all their memories_. Meaning he didn't know the life he lived prior to being a siren. He'd kept his name and general knowledge, but no memories. And he didn't know if he'd regain those memories or not once he turned human. But the scary thing was Marinette didn't yet know if she'd lose any of hers.

That was a very scary prospect, meaning this curse had to be lifted fast. She couldn't afford not to have her memories.

Had she known what she knew now, she would have stayed far away from the Seine. Like Luka had said, it was only because she had been an emotional train wreck that he had been able to coax her with his lovely singing voice to come over the guardrail of the bridge and fall into the Seine, agreeing to a deal that she didn't want but couldn't have objected to.

She opened her door, ready for a peaceful and quiet morning in the kitchen to help her process everything that had happened.

_Crash! Bang! Thunk!_

"The heck?!"

"Who are you and what have you done with Marinette!?"

Upon hearing Adrien's voice, Marinette's heart raced. She sprinted down the stairs to where Luka and Adrien were going at it, Luka trying to kick his way free of Adrien's stronghold.

"Hey!" Marinette cried.

Adrien whipped around to her voice, distracted enough for Luka to free his legs and land a kick square to Adrien's stomach.

But despite the hit, Adrien bounced back up pretty quickly, hurrying to stand in front of Marinette like he was her personal shield. "Call the cops. I'll keep him here until they come."

"Wait! Whoa. Hold on!" Marinette cried, side-stepping Adrien so she could stand between the two men. "Just hold on a second. No need to call the cops for any reason. Luka is a family friend. He's staying here for a bit, okay? He was coming through Paris to visit a friend, but he got robbed on his way, and now, he's staying here because his wallet is gone."

A decent enough story that Marinette had mentally rehearsed over and over last night. And she didn't even stutter in the lie. She didn't know whether to be proud or ashamed.

"O-oh." Adrien rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh… sorry."

"No worries," Luka returned, seemingly relaxed about it, but Marinette swore that Luka's gaze was a little too intense to be genuine. "You're just protecting your friend."

Adrien hummed, his own shoulders set too squarely to be relaxed, either. "Yeah. I was. Marinette, could we talk?"

"Yeah," she said. "Come on. I have an oven to start up and pastries that need to go in it."

He nodded, grabbing a plastic bag from off the floor before following her back into the kitchen while Luka remained out in the main bakery area.

"Sorry," he commented to her. "When I saw your jacket on the floor and a guy only in a pair of gym shorts, I kinda wondered what happened to you."

"It's okay," she said. "Thank you for protecting me even if I didn't need protecting in this case."

He sent her a sheepish, lopsided smile that made her heart race. It was not fair that he was this handsome. Not at all. Or that he was so protective over her. What girl wouldn't want the man she had a massive crush on to feel like he had to avenge her?

"So, a family friend?" Adrien questioned. "I've never met him before."

_Crap._ "Well, um, yeah. I met him only recently, too. His family lives a ways from here, but our moms were friends. Anyway, what brings you buy so early?"

Thankfully, it seemed Adrien bought her story and dismissed it. "Well, I was bringing you food to make you breakfast as an apology for last night."

She froze, staring at the bag he was holding with newfound interest. "O-oh? You didn't have to do that."

"I feel bad about canceling, so I'm hoping this could be a start of making it up to you."

"You needed to help your girlfriend," Marinette said, setting on the ovens to preheat. "I don't have a problem with that."

"But it wasn't fair that I canceled on you."

Marinette shrugged. "It's okay," she dismissed, lying once again. As selfish as it was, she wished Adrien had just told Kagami that he was sorry but that he had plans already. Kagami already got Adrien as her boyfriend, so why did she have to steal him away when it was Monday? That was _their_ special night, not Kagami's.

"It wasn't really," Adrien mumbled. "But thanks for understanding."

"She's okay, right?"

"Yeah," Adrien dismissed with a grin. "She's okay, but it still hurt to feel like she dishonored her family."

"That seems unfair. I'm sorry for her to have to deal with that." Marinette was honest about that. She couldn't imagine that kind of pressure from her family.

Adrien hummed. "I am, too. That's why I left my father. But enough about that." A fake grin stretched across his face, just as it always did when talking about his dad. "I guess I'll go make you breakfast. You and Luka, I suppose. And go apologize to Luka for, well, tackling him in the middle of the shop."

Marinette giggled. "Not exactly the best foot to start out on."

"No," Adrien agreed with a chuckle. "Not really. But you're not much better."

A warmth seeped into Marinette's cheeks. "Excuse you! What do you mean by that!"

"I mean we only met because you literally fell on me," he retorted with a grin.

"It was an accident!" she cried. "And tripping over your feet is still a better way to meet someone than beating them up."

Adrien paused. "Touché."

"Yeah. Better believe it. Now go play nice."

"No promises," Adrien returned with a cheeky smile before slipping out the door.

Marinette sighed, but at least she felt more relaxed now. Hopefully, the two boys would be able to make up quickly. Luka was stuck here for the time being, no matter who liked it or not.

The morning passed decently well. Adrien was kind enough to help her with getting all the pastries and treats ready for the day as well as set up the shop. She even managed to put Luka to work, having him clean and sweep.

"You're staying here, you work here," she had said, only partially teasing.

He took the offered broom with a smirk. "Fair enough, boss."

Even the morning rush wasn't too bad. With Adrien, things always ran smoothly. Well… nearly always. While it was happening less and less frequently, there were still devoted Adrien Agreste fangirls that showed up and tried to flirt with him. But he'd gotten better at dismissing them politely.

When the morning chaos was over and things were slowing down, that was when Marinette caught sight of Kagami entering the shop with two cups of coffee in her hands. "Here," she said, holding one out to Marinette. "An apology for yesterday."

While surprised, Marinette took the coffee. "Thank you."

She gave a single nod before turning her attention to Adrien, handing off the other coffee cup to him. "Are we still going out tonight?"

"Yeah," Adrien agreed. "After fencing practice."

"Of course," she said with a grin. "I'll see you tonight."

"See you, Kagami."

She sent him a wave before leaving the shop.

"That was… unexpectedly kind of her," Marinette said, looking down at the coffee she'd been brought.

"She's kind that way," Adrien said, setting his own cup aside. "Hey, why don't you take a break? You've been working hard and deserve one. I've got the front."

A break sounded fantastic. Not only could she get off her feet, and eat lunch, but she could check in on Luka who had hidden away from the commotion most of the morning. Maybe she'd train him to work the front so he could pull more of his weight. "Thanks, Adrien. Be back in thirty."

She slipped away the back, more than happy to take off her apron and collapse into a chair.

"What was up with Ms. Moody?"

Marinette jumped at Luka's sudden appearance beside her. After taking a breath to steady her hammering heart, she looked at him. "What? Who are you talking about?"

"The heartbroken girl that just came in," Luka answered.

"You saw her?"

He quirked a brow. "I didn't have anything better to do than watch from the sidelines."

_Note to self: training starts after lunch._ "That's Kagami, Adrien's girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?"

"Yeah. And she's always curt like that."

Luka's lips pursed as he glanced back towards the entrance to the bakery.

"Wait," Marinette said, pausing in the middle of the stairwell to the apartment as his words came back to her. "What do you mean by heartbroken?"

Luka scoffed. "Couldn't you see it?"

"See what?"

Luka frowned. "Her emotions. The little butterfly that rests on her chest and shifts colors like a mood ring."

Marinette could only blink absently. "Butterfly?"

Lua chuckled, but the sound was bitter. "You really aren't much of a siren, are you?" he snipped with a smirk. "If you can't tell someone's emotions, it's impossible to pass on the curse, you know."

"Yeah, sure, but I couldn't see anything. How do I know you aren't just lying about her being heartbroken? That makes no sense. She's happily dating Adrien."

"Happy she is not," Luka corrected. "I don't know all the specifics, but if I had to guess considering Blondie isn't touching the coffee, my guess is she didn't get his order right. Paired with that colorful butterfly on her chest, she's still hung up on the guy who she _actually_ ordered coffee for."

"I'm sorry," Marinette said, rubbing at her temples. "I just… I don't understand."

Luka scoffed. "Of course not. I'm saying Blondie is a rebound. But most importantly, I'm telling you that Ms. Moody is our ticket out of this curse."


End file.
